


this town of ours

by penandcheek



Category: Derry Girls (TV)
Genre: Coming of Age, F/M, Romance, School, Teenagers
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-07-02
Updated: 2019-07-02
Packaged: 2020-06-02 23:03:39
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,086
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/19451296
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/penandcheek/pseuds/penandcheek
Summary: She wraps herself in romantic ideals, she's always been consumed by the notion of it. She's learnt to spin a thousand tales with the precision of her words, and the lilt of her voice. She is only capable of viewing the world she lives in with all the grand majesty her imagination can afford, and yet, she's never seen anyone look at anything with the same stars in their eyes. Never, until the English fella falls into their lives, and makes permanent room in her heart.(A coming of age story, where love is the best accident you could ever hope for).





	this town of ours

**Author's Note:**

> hi everyone, this is my first derry girls fic, as well as my attempt at writing in nearly 2 years! so I've decided to jump back into it, and hopefully you all enjoy

The night was so still, it felt like the entire town was holding its breath. Erin could feel the skirt of her Easter dress swishing around her knees, as the warm evening air danced through hair, blowing the loose strands of where it had come undone, amidst the entire dance debacle. Orla had gone home early with Grandda, something about wanting to squeeze in a new step aerobics routine before bed, and Clare had practically run home, wanting to beat her Ma and Da home before they could see what had happened to her dress.  
Michelle had walked with them for a while, but she left to wash up, leaving them a string of colourful curses as a goodbye, all while squeezing the tomato juice out of her hair. 

So that was how it came to be, that Erin Quinn and James Maguire were wandering the streets of Derry at night. They rarely had prolonged moments where they were alone together (if ever they had moments alone at all), but after James had abandoned his creep convention, to take her to a school prom, and well, she didn't want the night to end without letting him know how grateful she was to have him as a friend. 

It was him who broke the silence first.

"You don't suppose your mum is expecting you home anytime soon do you? If you don't mind, we could hang out a little more, the prom was supposed to go on till late after all." 

The tips of his ears were tinged a little pink, and a sweet grin had spread across his face. It looked the same sweet grin that he had greeted her at the door with, and with that thought she found herself nodding along. 

"That'd be lovely." 

She led him towards a park nearby, it was one she and the girls had once played at frequently. It was an old haunt, filled with nostalgia and old memories, as old places often are. They sat down on a bench, close enough so that their shoulders were touching. 

She told him stories, stories of her and all the girls. They flowed out of her, like she was reading the pages of a book, or watching the scenes of a movie. There, she remembered, was where Orla twisted her ankle after chasing a bird and tripping over the slide. And around the swings was where Clare would screech so loud she'd catch the attention of the whole town, because Michelle would swing her higher and higher, even when she asked to come down. 

James just sat there and listened. He listened and laughed, and his eyes sparkled, and Erin was suddenly struck with the thought that these were his friends now too, and he didn't grow up with them like she did. That only drove her to tell him more stories, until they both dissolved into belly-aching laughter from all their little misadventures, that she couldn't tell another without absolutely losing it. When they were just coming down from their hysterical bout of laughter, and James was wiping the tears from his eyes, his insanely, abnormally sparkly eyes, she decided to tell him what she had been meaning to all night. 

"James," she started, with all the tenderness she felt towards him welling up in her chest. 

"Thank you, for taking me to the prom with you. You don't know how much it means to me, and I'm sorry you missed your creep- your Doctor Who convention." 

"Don't mention it. I had a good time." He seemed to contemplate something for a second, his eyes staring at the bench for a moment before lifting to look her square in the face.

"With you," he added after a moment. 

Erin felt her heart speed up. It was thundering so loudly in her chest, that she wondered if James could hear how heart it was beating. Or rather, how hard it was beating for him. His eyes were still on hers, and she realised belatedly, that their sparkle had intensified, it did funny things to her heart, to think about how his eyes might be sparkling for her. He smiled widely, with his teeth, and oh god he looked handsome. The intensity of his gaze made shivers run up and down her spine, and she ran her hands up and down her arms before it became too noticeable.

"Are you cold?" he asked, already unraveling the striped scarf off of his shoulders, and winding it around her neck, and the tops of her arms.

"You should come with me to the next Doctor Who convention. It suits you." 

A powerful, inexplicable urge to kiss him now washed over Erin. She wanted to, she was sure it'd be nice, not like the absolute shockers who Michelle had had a go of before. But the urge scared her a little, and so she settled for taking his hands in hers.

His lips parting in surprise, and his breathing seemed to hitch. 

She smiled softly, letting her feel all the fondness she had stored in her heart for this boy, this wee English fella. His palms were warm against hers, and she marvelled at the way it all felt, the crevices of his hands. 

They sat on silence for a few moments, wrapped up in each other, and their innocence and confusion, until a particular strong gist of wind blew across the park. Erin clutched the scarf to her a little tighter, and it broke them out of their reverie. 

"I think it's time to go home." 

And so, they walked the rest of the way home. When they arrived on her doorstep, she mustered every ounce of courage she had, to give him a peck on the cheek,. The spot she had kissed warmed instantly. Muttering a final goodbye, she flew indoors, her heart crashing wildly in her chest, and James' smile still behind her eyes. 

She looked out the window, just to make sure he got home safe, she told herself, and saw him walk out a little, turn back to wave, and continue the rest of the way home. 

She ran up the stairs, closing the door behind her and pressing her back against it. She could still see James' face, and without realising her lips stretched into a smile. As soon as she realised, it dropped. 

Oh no. No no no no no. It couldn't be true, it just couldn't. 

She could not be catching feelings for him. 

But she was.


End file.
